With a week until the NFL draft, it seems the furthest Missouri quarterback Blaine Gabbert would fall is to the Redskins at No. 10.

Gabbert could go much higher, but I don't envision a scenario in which at least two quarterbacks aren't taken in the top 10. The next quarterback to go, besides Auburn's Cam Newton, remains a mystery. Teams themselves, and agents for the various quarterbacks, just don't know, either.

Teams such as Minnesota and Miami have spent a lot of time looking at Ryan Mallett, Jake Locker, Colin Kaepernick, Christian Ponder, and Andy Dalton, and any of them could conceivably go in the teens somewhere. Then again, none of them could be selected in that area. When that third quarterback gets selected could have a significant impact on the bottom of the first round and the top of the second.

Smith tops among CBs?

I wrote this back at the NFL Scouting Combine and continue to hear it now: Based on pure skill alone, Colorado's Jimmy Smith is the best cornerback in this draft.

Defensive backs coaches I trust continue to make this case. And, as I pointed out back at the combine, the concerns with Smith are very, very real in terms of off-field decision making. He is getting peppered with many of the same character questions Mallett has been hit with.

There are legitimate risks involved with this young man, but he is also the best pure cover corner out there and has the potential to be a shutdown guy in press-man coverage right away. Teams like the Eagles and Ravens, which have strong, veteran leadership and also have a need at corner, might see too much potential to let Smith slip by.

Expect to hear more about him leading into the draft and I figure someone takes a chance on him in the 20s.